Chicken Soup for the lover's soul. I feel very close to this poem. Intimately, for example these lines:

(a hand of a man

who shields himself in layers

of serious jokes, and humorous forthrightness)

What instantly came to mind is the thought of certain 'people' that are a bundle of other people's words and phrases, to use on other people. Because without them, they're empty. You are a product of everyone else's words. That's what I drew there.

I also loved the beginning:

'Potential partnerships part like lips'

The words felt good in my mouth, especially with the use of those first three p's. And then the whole sentence at once, the simile, is beautifully conjured up.

I'd write more, but I need to be somewhere soon. This is wonderful, keep up the genius work.